The Legend of Zelda: Hero's Anemnesis
by AuraSidelong
Summary: In order to save Hyrule, Link must travel to a foreign land. However his quest comes to a halt when his memories are lost. Will he be able to reconstruct his past, or will Hyrule be lost with his memory?
1. The Boy in the Sand

**Hero's Anamnesis**

**Chapter 1**

**The Boy on the Sand**

The waves rolled over the moist sands, sighing as the waters pushed gently forward and then withdrew back into the sea. It was in the early hours of the morning. The night before had been a ferocious storm that had rocked the waters that now swayed so calmly against the shore. The sun peaked over the curving horizon, tinting the far off waters gold. Not far from where the waves touched the shore, a boy lay on the sand.

His skin was cold, and his body was perfectly still; his green clothes were waterlogged and torn. He was dead, having drowned at sea when his ship had been caught in the storm the night before. Now he was washed up on a foreign shore, yet to be discovered. This was until someone or something came upon him.

Bare, pale feet stopped in the sand when a pair of curious aquamarine eyes spotted the boy lying on the shore. The feet approached him, a girl's feet. Her skin was pale blue, almost white, and decorated sparsely by darkly colored markings. Prussian blue hair hung down her back in a braid that stopped half way down her body.

The girl knelt beside the boy, examining her newly found specimen. He hadn't been dead long, and it was obvious, by his waterlogged state, that he'd drown. He was young, not a child but under twenty at least. The girl frowned; she hated to see someone die so young. However, there _was_ something that could be done about it.

She left the boys side and headed towards the sea. She waded into the deeper water until she was immersed from the waist down. She scanned the water, in search of something. When she at last spotted it, she reached out to it and it came to her. A tiny ball of soft light rose out of the surf and hovered to the girl who beaconed for it. As she headed back t the shore she cradled the light in her hands.

The girl returned to the drowned boy and knelt by him again. This time she held out the light above him. As it levitated in between her hands it began to glow brighter until it reached its apex. It hummed softly for a moment and then the light dissipated and floated downward, fading when it toughed the boy.

A moment passed and suddenly breath returned to the boy, his chest lifted and fell as he breathed in the first breath after hours without life. Slowly, consciousness returned to him. He first saw the orange dawn lit sky above him, feathery clouds stretched across it. As he sat, up he came face to face with the girl who had resurrected him, though he was unaware of her deed. Once he noticed her she spoke to him.

"Be thankful", she said, "for your life has been restored."

The boy stared at her blankly, in a daze. The moment he regained consciousness he had become very confused as well. He did not know where he was or how he got there, and now he was spoken o be a strange girl. Receiving no response from him she spoke again.

"I am called Reka, I am the spirit who dwells in these waters. Who are you, human?"

The boy remained silent, his sapphire blue eyes darted back forth as he searched for an answer. _I am…_Nothing came to mind. A name, he was looking for a name, but he could find none. In fact there wasn't much at all that he could remember. Who? What? Where? When? All questions he himself couldn't answer, but why?

"Will you answer me?" the spirit asked. After more silence she inquired, "Can you answer me?" The boy shook his head, frowning slightly. Reka took a breath, questioning further, "Is there anything you can tell me?" The boy shook his head again. "I see…well then, human, what shall I call you?"

Once again the young man couldn't answer. What _should _she call him? He hadn't a clue. While he was thinking so hard the spirit's patience ran out, "Alright then", she said "seeing as you won't give me something to call you I shall have to decide myself. From now on I shall refer to you as…" she paused to think, staring at him with scrutinizing eyes as she searched for some outstand quality she could name him for.

He was light skinned, but not pallid. His face was soft and young looking, framed by locks of his golden wheat colored hair. No ideas came to her yet, and so Reka continued to stare at the boy, who stared back at her with his serene blue eyes. Blue eyes. That was it!

Reka's expression brightened, an idea striking her, "I know. From now on I'll call you Blue-Eyed One. Will that do?" The boy, or Blue-Eyed One, as Reka had declared, merely shrugged having no other option. "Very well then, Blue-Eyed One it is." Reka confirmed, she then said one more thing, "By the way Blue-Eyed One, do you speak? What I mean is can you speak, or are you mute?"

"I can speak" he replied, his voice sounded more mature that the spirit expected based on his young looks, "I just haven't had a need for it yet I suppose."

"I understand, so you are a quiet one?" nodded Reka, "I can respect that. I was just curious since you hadn't said a word yet. Well enough of this," she said, standing as she changed the subject, "come with me, let's not stay out in the open like this?"

"Why?" the blonde boy asked, "Is it dangerous here?"

"Not exactly that, well at least not for you. You are a human, I am not. " Reka explained, "I am an Espri."

The other individual present gave her an inquisitive look, "An Espri? What is that?"

"As I told you before, I am a spirit. Espri are apparitions of the natural elements earth, wind, fire, water, ice, and the rest. We are born attributed to an element, mine being water. I've lived off of these shores my whole life watching the people who inhabit this land. They are…" she searched for a proper adjective, "a curious species. They are interesting to me, I like to observe them. Though it's difficult as I can only do so from afar."

"Are they afraid of you?" the blue eyed one asked.

Reka had begun to walk, expecting the boy to follow, but she paused a moment, when he asked this question. "Well…no. Actually I don't know. I've never been seen by a human before you." She glanced back at him, "Are you afraid?" The blonde shook his head in reply. "I see," Reka continued, walking again, "I did not expect as such. I do resemble a human after all, though I do not always appear this way."

"Is that so?" The boy asked, "So then how else do you appear?"

"That is not important at the moment." Reka dismissed, ending conversation about that topic, "Now, just keep following me, and don't lag behind. It may be an early hour, but the humans will arrive here soon. There is a village just over that hill you see there." She said, pointing out the landmark for her companion to see. "From what I've observed, the people there make much of their living off of the sea. They draw food as and miscellaneous things from the water, as well as use it for travel and trade."

"You know all this?" The human replied, "Perhaps then it has not been so hard to observe them after all."

Reka laughed, "I know so much due to a collective effort. I haven't had much else to do here than watch the people and explore my surroundings, though by now I assure you I can navigate through these waters by memory alone."

"How long have you been here?" The blue-eyed one asked.

"Decades, though I can't tell you how many. I never bothered to count them." Replied the Espri.

The boy was a bit surprised by her answer. The Espri looked his age or perhaps slightly younger. Then again she wasn't human and as she'd said, she was a spirit, so was it really wasn't all that hard to believe.

The two walked the rest of the way in silence, though they did not travel much farther. Reka lead the boy to a small cove indenting the shore line. In the far end of the cove was a cave carved by the waves. A shallow strait of water flowed into the cave from the sea. The Espri entered the cave, though the human was hesitant to follow. "It's safe, I assure you." Said the spirit, noticing his reluctance.

The blue-eyed one fallowed her in. The cave was dark and filled with the smell of the sea. The boy kept to the far right of the cave where the water did not reach. The Espri, however, was content with sloshing through the small strait that grew deeper and wider as they progressed further into the cave. The rim of sand that the boy had kept himself on grew thinner and thinner for a while, but eventually reached a consistent width, which was just wide enough for him to stand on. They had reached the core of the cave, a miniature salt lake.

"Here is a much more favorable setting." Commented Reka as she stroked comfortably through the water.

"I can hardly see." Said the blonde. It was dark and moist where they were. The only light streamed in from an aperture in the ceiling of the cave, directly above the center of the lake.

"I don't mind it." The spirit said, "There is water here, so I am content." She began to circle around the lake, watched by the boy who sat cross legged on the damp but firm sand. After a small silence the Espri addressed the blonde again. "I want to show you something." She said before ducking under the water for a few moments. When she resurfaced she swam closer to him and held up a small object on a string. "Do you recognize this?" She asked.

The boy squinted, trying to see through the murky light. He reached out for it, and the Espri gave it to him so that he could examine it closer. It was cold and rusty in his hand; he brought it closer to his face and immediately recognized it. "It's a fishing hook." He informed, handing it back to Reka.

The Espri glanced at the objet, "A fishing hook?" she repeated.

"Yes." Confirmed the young man, "Normally you'd find it attached to a fishing rod. People use it to catch fish."

"They do?" Reka looked interested, "I've never seen one before. I thought humans used nets to catch fish?"

"Nets can catch greater sums of fish at once, but usually that takes a long while. It's quicker to use a fishing rod, and sometimes more efficient. It'd be difficult to try using a fishing net in a river." The boy explained.

"I see," replied Reka, "how is it used though?" she asked.

"You cast the hook into the water and wait for something to bite. The hook will have bait on it to lure something in. Then when you've got something, you reel it in."

"Hmm…." Reka thought for a moment, and then she smiled when an idea came to her. "I would like to ask you a favor." She said, "I would like you to bring me a fishing rod."

"Why do you want that?" the blue-eyed boy asked.

"I'm curious," explained Reka, "I'd like to _see_ how one of these rods works. Besides, it's the least you can do for me after I saved your life." The boy looked at her questioningly. "Do you not remember, it was not long ago, a few minutes actually."

Now that she mentioned it, he did remember the Espri saying something like that. _Be thankful for your life has been restored. _When she'd said it he had still been in a daze of confusion, he hadn't quite understood what she meant, as plain as it had been said. "You saved my life?" he asked.

"I suppose that's one way of putting it, but I did not _save _your life, I returned it to you." Reka replied.

"You mean to say that I was dead? What happened to me?" asked the boy.

"You had drowned." Reka answered. "I found you on the shore just this morning after last night's storm. You do remember the storm at least, don't you?"

"No….I don't remember anything." The blonde shook his head, a slightly uneasy look coming to him. He couldn't understand it. Someone should remember something as traumatizing as nearly drowning, or in this case, successfully drowning. Though was it really so surprising, he couldn't remember his own name after all.

Reka frowned at his brooding. "Don't look so unhappy. You're alive aren't you? Be thankful."

"I am thankful, very much so. I owe you my life. " He replied before sighing, "Still I am also very confused. I can't remember a thing about myself. It worries me."

"Why not put your mind to something else then?" Reka asked, "Clearly it's no use being pensive over memories that aren't there."

"I suppose you're right." The blue-eyed individual agreed. "Well then I guess I might as well get started on finding you that fishing rod you asked for." He then stood, patting the sand off of his legs.

Reka smiled, "That is a good plan. Now, you remember that village I told you about? You can begin your search there."


	2. The Shark and the Sword

**Hero's Anamnesis**

**Chapter 2**

**The Shark and the Sword**

The village of Maricove was just beyond the hill, as Reka had promised. It was small but busy, home to fisherman, sailors, and the occasional traveler. There were inns and small street markets, all the things you'd expect to find in a small village. The wheat-haired young man took his time as he ambled through the streets, touring the new setting. It certainly smelled better than salt water, but he had to admit it the beach had been a much more serene place. There was sound layered upon sound; the buzz of people speaking to one another and the clacking of horse hooves.

The blue –eyed one came to a stop when he noticed a gnarled old sign. Much of the paint was peeled off, though he could still just barely make out what it said―_Whetherby's Tackle Shop. _This was a perfect find, there had to be fishing robs here. He entered the shop, which was two stories high, with a skinny chimney poking out of the top. It seemed large for a tackle shop. Then again Maricove was a fishing community.

The first thing the boy noticed when he entered the shop was a large, very large, and very imposing fish hanging on the back wall. It was long and grey with a crescent shaped caudal fin and only half of a dorsal fin. In fact after a closer look the boy noticed that it wasn't a fish at all, it was a shark. Whoever had conquered this big creature must have certainly been very proud of it, not that he blamed them. The thing was a monster.

The young man's gawking was interrupted when a yell and a crash caught his attention. He quickly turned his attention to the direction in which he believed the source to be. He spotted a door and assumed that it must have come from whatever room was behind it.

He peeked through the door and what he saw was a mess. The room was filled with shelves, though barely any of them held anything on them. Most of what should have been on the shelves was actually littering the floor. In the center of the clutter was a person, who had apparently taken quite a fall judging by the way they were sprawled on the floor groaning. "Ow…" muttered the person, a girl, as she sat up in the midst of the disorganization, "stupid latter."

She stood, rubbing her sore hip, and then taking a look at the jumble around her. "Look at this mess!" she whined, "Grandfather will give me hell for this! What was he thinking trusting me to organize all this?" The poor girl looked about ready to tear her own hair out, by the looks of it she'd been in the room for hours attempting, and failing miserably, to bring order.

After a quick pout the girl sighed and decided to resume cleaning. She began scooping up items off of the floor. This was until someone said, "Excuse me."

Startled, she gasped and dropped what she was holding, turning quickly to the figure behind her. It was the blue eyed boy. "Oh my, forgive me for that I was startled."

The boy smiled apologetically, "I'm sorry for startling you."

"Don't be," the girl replied, "I'm just neurotic that's all. You see I thought you might be my Grandfather. He owns this shop. Oh! Did you need something? That must be why you're here." The boy nodded to answer her. "My Grandfather isn't here at the moment, but I can help you in his stead." She offered.

"Thank you, Miss." Blue eyes replied.

"Don't thank me, it's my job. I'm Mara by the way." The girl introduced, reaching out to shake the young man's hand.

The blonde accepted the offered hand and replied, "Nice meeting you Mara. I'm…" That's right, he couldn't remember what his name was. He couldn't tell her Blue-Eyed One since that wasn't a real name, instead he recovered with, "I'm looking for a finishing rod."

"Is that so? Well you came to the right place." Said Mara, "We have the best fishing supplies here that includes fishing rods. They should be right over….over…" she bit her lip, "Where did I put them?" Mara lightly bit down on her index finger as she scanned the room, trying to remember what she'd done with the fishing rods. Though it was hopeless, they could be anywhere among the helter skelter inventory.

"Maybe we should clean this place up first." Said the blonde.

"I know, I should have had this place cleaned hours ago…" she paused, "Wait, did you say we?" The boy nodded yes. "You mean you'd help me clean this whole place?" Mara asked with an expectant look in her eyes. She received another nod and a bright exhaulting smile swept her face as if she could hear the hallelujah chorus. "Thank you, thank you!" she squealed excitedly, "I couldn't do this by myself you know. And since you're going to help me, I'll give you whatever fishing rod you like for half of the price!"

The blue-eyed boy smiled, and then his smiled flat lined. That's right, he'd need money to buy fishing rod, or anything for that matter, and as far as he knew he hadn't a single rupee on him. He'd have to worry about that later, now he was to help Mara organize the store room.

"I really do appreciate this", Mara said, "I really am hopeless I can never get anything done on my own. By the way, I never asked your name."

"Oh…", perfect now should he do. He had to think of a name, and quick, but if he waited too long then she'll get suspicious, or think he's slow in the head, neither of which he wanted.

_Dong! Dong! Dong!_

Both individuals were taken by surprise when the loud tolling of a bell rang through the city. Mara looked up, recognizing the sound and what it could mean. "Why is the bell being rung this early?" By the way her brows slanted upward with concern, it was clear that she knew something must be wrong. Without a word to the young man, she hurried through the door and headed out of the shop. The boy followed.

Out in the town people had stopped in the middle of what they were doing and now stared toward the large brass bell atop a tower in the center of town. Mara went to the first person she saw, a middle aged man who'd been pushing a cart full of dead fish. "What's happened? Why is the bell being rung?" Mara asked. The man, who looked as confused as she was, replied, "I haven't a clue. Maybe you should run down to the tower and ask Taman."

Mara did just that. She turned and ran toward the tower, the young man still fallowing. "Whose Taman?" he inquired as they hurried to the tower.

"Taman is the bell ringer; he'll know what's wrong." Mara answered.

The two reached the tower just as someone was scaling down the iron latter that lead to the top. Mara recognized him right away as a fisherman. "What's happening?" she asked.

The young man looked down at her, "A shark's been spotted in the bay, a real big one too. I came here as fast as I could to tell Taman to call everyone back to shore."

Mara looked pale at the news, "Trevor said something about going out to fish this morning! I knew it was a bad idea!" She turned towards the hill that separated Maricove from the sea and fled. The boy, feeling there was no other option, followed after her yet again.

It was a short run to the beach, and once they reached the sand they were met by a whole flood of sailors and fisherman who were plowing back to the safety of the shore. Mara's eyes darted from person to person, searching for the face of Trevor. It concerned her greatly when he was no where among the crowd.

In a panic she began to ask the people around her, "Excuse me! Sir have you seen a little boy, he's my brother." She received no helpful feed back at first, but eventually she was in luck. One of the fisherman, over hearing her, said, "Miss, are you talking about a young boy with black hair?"

Mara turned to the fisherman, "Yes! Have you seen him?" she asked. Though she was about to receive a very, very bad answer.

"Look there, that's him up on that rock." The man pointed as he said this. The rock in question was several yards away from the shore. It was large, two and a half yards wide and several feet high. Trevor stood atop the center on it looking absolutely terrified as he stared down at the water below where, though hidden beneath the surface, circled the monster.

"Trevor!" Mara shouted, "Come down from there and get back to shore!"

"I can't," replied the trembling Trevor, "that monster is down there! It'll eat me!"

"Use the path!" Mara instructed, referring to the chain of mossy boulders that formed a scattered bridge to the sand.

"No!" refused Trevor, "I'll fall!"

Growing desperate, Mara turned to the blue-eyed boy she'd met in the tackle shop. "He's trapped up there. What should I―" she stopped midsentence; the boy was gone.

"Look over there! What's that guy doing!" someone shouted, catching Mara's attention. The person was pointing towards the rock path that lead to where her brother was stranded. Mara's jaw dropped; hopping across the rocks towards Trevor was the blonde young man.

He was fast, within moments he had reached a small rock platform that was just below the boulder Trevor had sought refuge on. "Jump down, I'll catch you!" the young man called out.

"I'll never make it!" Trevor replied.

"Yes you will! I promise!"Assured the blonde.

Trevor was very reluctant to do so, the risk was too high. But then again, how else could he get down. The shark was down there in the water waiting, odds were it wouldn't leave until it had its fill of boy meat. Either he jumped now, or remained stranded on the rock.

"I-I'll jump on three!" said Trevor, "Don't drop me okay!"

The blonde nodded his assurance, widening his stance so that he would be ready to catch the child. Trevor looked down at him one last time before taking a few steps back and beginning his count down. He went slowly, "One…" his voice shook, "T-two…" he took a deep breath, pausing for almost thirty seconds before he called out the last number, this was it, he was going to jump. But was he ready?

"Three!" with a running start Trevor leapt forward, sending himself into a brief mid-air arch that soon pulled him down toward the ledge, or the water, now it all depended on the young man with the blue eyes. The blonde kept his eyes locked on the little boy as he came falling toward him. He widened his stance and leaned forward, arms outstretched. If he messed this up the both of them could end up in the water.

Trevor landed right in the young man's arms, though the impact nearly made the blonde fall right off of the platform. Luckily he was able to regain his footing. He placed the child down on the platform, sighing in relief. Though this feeling would be short lived for just as soon as Trevor was safely on the platform the little boy screamed and pointed at something in the water, "It's coming for us!"

This was when the young man saw a massive black fin slicing through the water toward them. The platform they stood on kept them out of the water, but not by much. Only about and or so of rock was above the surf and by the size of the dorsal fin that was jutting out of the water, the beast was big enough to easily launch itself right onto the tiny piece of land, the same went for most of the rock path. Their only hope was to make it back to shore as fast as possible.

The blue eyed boy quickly whisked Trevor into his arms again and darted to the next rock platform. He made it across just as the monster emerged from the water and threw its head onto the rock where they had stood only seconds ago. Having missed its pray the shark― whose size could be estimated as larger than many of the houses in Maricove― roared and plunged itself back into the water. It wasn't over yet though, the shark wouldn't give up that easily.

The two boys jumped from one piece of the path to the next as swiftly as they could while the shark visible trailed after them. The giant fish tried persistently to get its jaws around them, though fortunately it missed every time by just the slightest. On one occasion Trevor nearly went straight down into the water when he slipped on the mossy surface.

Before long they came to a small safe point, however it was located just prior to the most hazardous portion of the path. There were rocks and boulders of varying heights and sizes jutting out of the water in different direction. They were all blotted with green moss. It would not be an easy task for the two to get across quickly, but if they were too slow the shark would probably snatch them right off of the rocks.

The Blue-Eyed One pursed his lips together as he tried to think quickly for a solution. Then, as he was surveying the path it came to him. He advised Trevor to wait where he was until he'd carried out his plan, which he had not shared with the boy. He dove right into the water, leaving Trevor who was absolutely horrified to see him do this. _What's going through his head!_ Thought the little boy.

When the young man surfaced he began to stoke his way through the water as fast as his arms and legs could propel him. While he did this he kept a lookout for the shark. He spotted the black dorsal fin from the corner of his eye as it rose out of the surf, revealing the shark's location. Despite this, the blonde remained in the water. He came to a stop in front of a thick, cylindrical rock that was several feet high. There he waited, treading in the water as he watched the black fin draw near. It was several yards away, but quickly closing the distance.

Trevor couldn't believe what he was seeing, first the young man dove into the water and now he was floating like chum in the water waiting for the monster to come at him. "What are you doing! Get out of the water!" he urged, but the young man ignored his cries. At this rate he could become shark food in a matter of seconds.

The blonde kept his eyes locked on the approaching fin, waiting for the right moment. When it was at a certain distance from him he took a deep breath and submerged himself under the water. Now he could see the beast for all that it was. The monster plowed through the water towards him with its mouth agape, bearing pearly razor teeth like small white shovel heads. It was all up to timing now; he had to make his move exactly at the right moment. If he was even a hair to soon or too late he would be a dead man. He braced himself.

_3…2…1…_

_NOW!_

And then the moment came. Using his legs to push him from the boulder he propelled himself downward, slipping under the shark a mere second before it would have had him in its jaws. With no time to change directions, the monster rammed into the side of the boulder at such high speed that it was rocketed backward by the collision. The boy watched as the giant fish floated down ward, belly up. His plan had succeeded.

The blonde finally resurfaced from the water, gasping for air. He returned to the rock where he'd left Trevor, who was wide eyed. With Trevor's help he pulled himself back onto the platform. The little boy was just as winded as he had been, having held his breath the entire time while he watched the young man's plan unfold. "That was amazing!" Trevor exclaimed, "I thought you were shark bait for sure!"

The thought of becoming a meal for a large fish had half crossed his mind while he was wading in the water. He'd suppressed it though, figuring that the mental image of himself being torn into many pieces by a ravaging sea creature would do little to help his situation.

With the threat gone the two set off for shore again, this time they wouldn't have to evade the constant attempts of a giant carnivore to eat them. The beach was only a few meters away now. Eager to reach the sand Trevor hurried on ahead, hopping from one rock structure to the next. He looked back at the young man to urge him to hurry, though he paused before he'd even uttered a single word―his eyes widened, and his rejoicing smile vanished.

The blonde didn't understand why the little boy was giving him such a look. He looked shocked and terrified. Assuming that whatever was scaring Trevor must be beyond him, he turned around. That's when it hit him―literally. The last thing he saw before being plunged into the water was a large black fin. The shark had returned, and this time it was using a new strategy. The creature had purposely rammed into the rock that the young man had been standing on, knocking him off balance and into the surf.

Panicking, the blue eyed young man swam for the platform as fast as he could. Unfortunately he'd never reach it. The creature's massive jaws rose above the waves around him, encircling him in a watery death trap. Just as it surfaced, the shark sank back down beneath the waves, this time with a young man trapped in it's mouth.

Trevor watched the scene frozen in place, unable to do a thing. It was over now. The shark was gone and so was the young man who saved him. He had to be dead.

_Dead._

This was the first thing to cross the blonde's mind when he awoke in darkness. _Am I dead?_ He wasn't sure. He saw nothing but inky black, but this wasn't nothingness. No, he was sure that if anything nothingness wouldn't be a warm, damp, and above all smelly place. Wherever he was, it stunk like a 3 month old heap of rotting fish.

He stood, though the surface beneath him didn't feel very solid. It was very wet and squished beneath his bar feat. He to a look at his surroundings, that's when he spotted it, something glowing in the darkness. It was very faint, but he could make out the outline of what looked like a sideways cross.

He approached it, squinting as he drew nearer to try and decipher what it was. When he was close enough he noticed that, whatever it was, it was lodged into the side of something. Curious, he reached out and toughed it. The instant that he made contact with it his body felt numb. An overwhelming white light surrounded him. He covered his eyes, but only moments later the light faded, revealing his new surroundings.

Wherever he'd been before, he was no longer there. Now he was in what looked like the remains of an ancient stone temple. Trees, moss, and foliage had overgrown the place, blotting it with patches of green. Light beamed down from the opening where the ceiling had once been, reflecting off of a silver object in the center of the room. It was a sword.

The blade was wedged firmly into the ground. It looked as if it had been there for decades, centuries even, awaiting the swordsman who would claim it and free it from its mossy tomb. He didn't know why, but something within him knew that he was the one to take the sword. He reached out for it and took the grip firmly with both hands. Then, with a steady stance he lifted the blade out of the earth.

As he held the blade above him he looked into its reflection. There was an image of pristine clarity. It was a young man with a sword, clothed in forest green garb, in one hand was the sword, in the other was a shield. He slashed and jabbed at the air, displaying his mastery of the art of the sword. The young man watched, memorized, unable to take his eyes off of the image before him. Something about it made him experience a deep feeling of nostalgia. And that's when he realized that the young man in the image was him. He felt the sword in his hand, the shield in the other. He was the one adorning the green clothing.

After this realization he began to hear a voice. It called out to him, echoing off of the stone walls. It was a female voice, it called him by name. His name, he remembered it now. _That's right, my name is…._

And then everything was gone. The stone temple ruins, the voice, the sword and shield. They vanished as he returned to his former setting―darkness. He stood in the murky black, having awoken from his trance. As sensation returned to his body, he felt the faintly glowing object still in his hand, the item that had started it all. He tightened his grip and took hold of it with his other hand. With a strong pull, he yanked it out of whatever it was lodged in. Only now that it was fully revealed did he realize exactly what it was. It was the sword from his vision.

Once he'd drawn the sword there was another light, though this time it didn't engulf him. It at first looked like a glowing zigzag, but it continued to expand until it had fully revealed itself as an opening, and exit from the darkness. He wandered towards it and then took a tentative step outside.

He knew where he was when he recognized the feeling o sand beneath his feet. He was on the beach, but how had he gotten there? He turned around to see what he'd been inside of, and he nearly fell over in surprise. Before him was a massive creature black creature. He stumbled back, unsure of what it was, then he noticed the large black fin on its stumbled back, unsure of what it was, then he noticed the large black fin on its back. It was the shark―no it was a whale.

The young man was thoroughly surprised to see a huge black whale when he'd expected to see a huge black shark. If this was the creature that had swallowed him, then that meant that there had never been a shark in the first place. Though now that he thought about it, he never remembered seeing gills on the creature, a vital part of a shark's body. Instead there was a distinct blow hole at the top of its head. So all along the commotion had been about a whale. That seemed strange, why would a whale want to eat people. This question was answered when he looked down at the sword in is hand. That was why the whale had been in a rage, the sword had been lodged in its throat. So then the whole time it hadn't been trying to eat him and the little boy, it had been looking for someone to remove the sword.

The whale bellowed a marine thank you before returning to the deeper water once again. The young man watched it sink into the waves until it could no longer be seen. Not long after the whale had gone, the sound of rapid footsteps against the sand and shouting caught his attention. "Look! There he is!"

Two figures came running toward him. It was Trevor, this time accompanied by Mara. Though smaller, Trevor was much faster than his sister. He was at the young man's side within a few seconds. Panting after his sprint, he stood slouched over with his hands on his knees. "I can't…believe it…" Trevor huffed, "you're…alive." He took a deep breath to regain his normal composure, "How?"

The blonde contemplated whether or not he should tell the whole story. He figured it might seem a little much to say that he'd found some sort of mystic glowing sword inside of the shark, which was actually a whale, had a vision, and then been returned to the shore. So instead he said this, "I'm lucky I suppose. It just didn't like the way I tasted."

Trevor giggled at this, as did Mara who, at the moment, was really just thankful that her brother was safe. She joined the conversation, saying, "I can't thank you enough, if not for you my brother might have been eaten."

"I only did what needed to be done; you don't have to thank me." Said the blonde humbly.

"Of course we do!" Mara objected, "What you did was extremely brave, I've met full grown men who wouldn't do what you've done for ten hundred rupees! Honestly I think that the men in this town could learn a thing or two from you."

Though he'd insisted that what he'd done deserved no praise, Mara's short rant made him reconsider. What had he done exactly? He'd just risked life and limb for a complete strange. Until now he hadn't put much thought into it. It just seemed like the thing to do, like he'd done it time and time again already. But now that he thought about it, how many people actually risked their lives by playing the hero? How many times had he done it?

He was snapped out of his daze when Mara spoke to him. "I just remembered," She said, "you never told me your name. Back at the shop you were about to tell me, but then there the bell. So, if you don't mind me asking again, what is your name?"

The young man paused. _My name,_ he thought. He remembered hearing a name in his vision, a name used distinctly to address him. So then, it had to have been his. _My name is…._ "Link", he told her, "My name is Link."


End file.
